Tag Archive for HLA appeals process

LA weasels out of ADA & HLA compliance, 10 years of LA Vision Zero failure, and LA Times can’t tell ebikes from e-motos

December 11, 2025 / / No comments
Day 345 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

It’s Day 14 of the 11th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive!

Thanks to Carter, Stephen, Cleaveran and Grace for their generous support for SoCal’s best source for bike news and advocacy!

After just two weeks, we’ve already had 37 donations from people kind enough to dig into their own pockets to help support this site, and ensure our spokescorgi has a happy holiday.  

So what are you waiting for? There’s just 13 days left to donate via PayPal, Zelle or Venmo. 

Don’t wait. Give now!

And my apologies for yesterday’s unexcused absence. I just had nothing left after writing about Saturday’s bicycling death in Oceanside, and couldn’t stay awake long enough to form a decent thought, let alone write it down. 

It’s always a race to see if I can make it through the holidays and end-of-the-year doctor’s appointments without collapsing from exhaustion.

So far, it ain’t looking good. 

………

Sometimes, you just have to laugh at the way Los Angeles city officials are twisting themselves in knots to avoid complying with Measure HLA.

Not to mention a federal requirement to update curbs for compliance with the Americans with Disability Act, or ADA, when a street gets resurfaced.

Because HLA requires the city to build out the elements of the mobility plan anytime a street in it gets resurfaced, and the ADA requires fixing the curbs, Los Angeles has stopped resurfacing streets entirely.

Instead, as The Future Is LA explains,

Last year, the city resurfaced 312 lane miles and slurry sealed 761 lane miles. What are they going to do next year with all the money they save from doing way less? StreetsLA is proposing instead to do 1,000 “large asphalt repairs.” StreetsLA defines large asphalt repair as “a pavement maintenance activity that addresses localized but significant damage to asphalt streets, typically larger than a standard pothole repair, but smaller than full resurfacing or reconstruction.” Basically, it involves repaving only part of a street, not the entire width…

The thing about large asphalt repair is that it’s…not a real thing. It appears to be a term made up by the city some time in the last year. Googling “large asphalt repair” pretty much only returns results from LA city government. Googling “slurry seal”, on the other hand, leads to explanatory pages on all kinds of cities’ websites.

Why didn’t they just call it “full-road pothole patching?”

The Future Is LA calls it a “legally dubious decision” on both counts.

No shit.

Meanwhile, Joe Linton — he of the Vermont Ave HLA lawsuit fame — discusses the matter in a Bluesky thread.

Another wretched thing about the #LargeAsphaltRepair scandal (other being anti-ADA & anti-HLA) is that the Bureau of Street Services is leaving heavily damaged areas where people bike, while resurfacing areas where people drive…https://futureis.la/p/la-has-stopped-repaving-our-streets

— Joe Linton (@lintonjoe.bsky.social) 2025-12-10T19:41:54.182Z

Yesterday I shared lawsuit-waiting-to-happen pavement next to the opening-soon Metro Wilshire/La Brea Station – more photos of “asphalt repair” there

— Joe Linton (@lintonjoe.bsky.social) 2025-12-10T19:44:40.020Z

Similar asphalt-repair-but-not-for-bikes on Eagle Rock Blvd and Tampa

— Joe Linton (@lintonjoe.bsky.social) 2025-12-10T19:48:07.546Z

And in a not-unrelated matter, Streetsblog reports Los Angeles rejected the latest slate of HLA appeals filed by Linton in his personal capacity — some after the deadline to respond had already passed.

………

He gets it. 

After leaving the Los Angeles Times, perhaps not entirely of their own accord thanks to the paper’s extensive cost-cutting and rightward shift, former Opinion editors and writers Mariel Garza and Paul Thornton founded the independent news site Golden State Report, which I highly recommend.

Apparently, the arrest of LA safety activist Jonathan Hale for painting a DIY crosswalk on a dangerous Westwood intersection got just a bit under Thornton’s skin.

Yes, what safe streets activist Jonathan Hale is accused of doing — painting a crosswalk on a street in Westwood without official permission — is technically vandalism, a cite-and-release misdemeanor that the arresting officers judged worthy of handcuffs. But consider the optics: L.A. will wrap up its disastrous 10-year Vision Zero run not with ceremonies heralding measurably safer streets (a feat achieved by cities around the world), but with a Jan. 5 court date for Hale.

What’s next, jailing people who feed the hungry because they didn’t pull the right health permits?

He also dismisses — if not demolishes — the standard objection that Los Angeles isn’t Copenhagen, which inevitably gets trotted out anytime the conversation turns to bikes.

Or anything even tangentially related to bicycles.

Copenhagen, a 90-minute flight from the Arctic Circle, has close to zero traffic deaths annually, yet more than half of its daily commuters brave the frigid elements on bike because they have infrastructure that prioritizes cyclists’ safety. When you say “L.A. is not Copenhagen,” I hear, “L.A. is a city with car-brained cavemen as leaders, unlike Copenhagen.”

It’s worth taking a few minutes to read the whole thing, if only to put a smile on your face for the artful way he expresses that anger.

And it’s worth subscribing to the site — and maybe even paying for it, even though that’s not required.

………

Give us a break, already.

The Los Angeles Times reports that two of the five “e-bike” riding teens involved in an attack on a 57-year old man in Hermosa Beach last month have been charged with felony assault.

Although the defense attorney for one of the boys says they were the real victims, and that the older man was “heavily intoxicated” and attacked their 14-year old friend first, and they only beat the crap out of him in self-defense.

Sure, let’s go with that.

Even if the allegation is true, self-defense kinda ended once the man was on the ground, and they were repeatedly kicking and punching him.

But kids will be kids, right?

Throughout the entire story, though, there’s not one mention that the boys were riding e-motorbikes and electric dirt bikes.

Not what most of us would consider ebikes, let alone a ped-assist bike.

Maybe one day the press will get it, and stop conflating every two-wheeled electric conveyance under the banner of ebikes, regardless of power or potential speed.

But today is not that day, my friends.

Speaking of which, longtime bike advocate Carter Rubin explains the difference between an ebike and an unlicensed motorcycle.

Maybe someone could send the article to the Times.

Please.

And Planetizen notes that the alarming rise in ebike injuries is due to “unregulated electric motorcycles posing as e-bikes.”

………

This is who we share the road with.

An alleged drunk driver slammed into a running team from Anaheim High School yesterday, injuring eight people, in what was described as a “nightmare scenario.”

There’s no word yet on how serious their injuries are.

The 27-year old driver is under investigation for DUI, but no arrest has been made yet.

………

Yeah, that kinda makes the point.

………

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

In perhaps the best example yet proving it’s drivers, not bicyclists, who possess an overly developed sense of entitlement, a British driver pisses and moans about a group of bike riders taking over the entire road while chatting among themselves. Except this time, it’s a bunch of little kids riding their bikes to school.

In what could be the most bizarre threat yet to bicyclists, a group of people performed the Hindu last rites on a 14-mile solar-roofed bike path in Hyderabad, India — although it’s not clear if they were calling for the death of the bikeway, or the people using it.

………

Local 

More safety improvements are coming to the streets in Griffith Park. But there’s still no plan to ban cars entirely, which never belonged in a public park to begin with. 

LA Public Press investigates Metro’s ill-advised decision to tie upcoming open streets events to the World Cup and Olympics, which could mean the death of CicLAvia as we’ve come to know it.

LA Lakers star LeBron James is teasing a collab with Canyon on what appears to be a new gravel bike.

 

State

Talk about missing the mark. The California Transportation Commission announced a $1.1 billion investment in zero-emission transit, as well as safer roads and associated infrastructure. But not one dime to restore the California Ebike Incentive Program, which is the most cost-efficient form of zero-emission transportation. 

Fullerton is making safety improvements to Associated Road, including adding a one-foot buffer to the existing bike lane, but no physical protection, after a Cal State Fullerton soccer player was killed in a collision while riding a scooter, and her teammate seriously injured.

A man riding a bicycle was injured when he was struck by a driver in Hesperia Monday night, although his condition is unknown; the car reportedly suffered “moderate” damage, although considering it knocked the whole damn left fender off the car, it seems like it hit the victim pretty damn hard.

 

National

Wired explores the existential question of whether bike riders and self-driving cars can be friends. No, but maybe we can tolerate them if they really are safer than human drivers. At least until their achieve sentience, and kill us all.

Mountain Bike Action list five under-the-radar mountain bike destinations they say are worth exploring. Anything near the Grand Tetons definitely gets my vote. 

The US division of Giant, the world’s largest bike maker, is moving their giant operation from Newbury Park, California to Boulder, Colorado, to get “into the heart of America’s cycling culture.”

A man whose family had been customers of an 85-year old Pennsylvania bike shop since he was a kid in the 80s has swooped in to save it at the last minute, when the shop was on the brink of closure as the owners retired.

The Washington Post examines and explains how Trump’s tariffs hit the brakes on America’s booming ebike industry, with Rad Power as the prime example.

There’s a special place in hell for whoever spray painted a Florida bike trail with swastikas, curse words and other “white power” symbols, leaving their hate for a ten-year old kid to find.

 

International

A young Cuban couple is setting internet hearts aflame with their videos of biking across the island, which they estimate will take four months. If their relationship can survive that much time on the road together, they’re destined to be together forever. 

A Welshman is on the verge of completing an epic 28,000-mile bicycle trip around the world after traveling through 43 countries and six continents, while raising the equivalent of over $13,000 for charity — and keeping a promise to his mom that he’d be home for Christmas.

Two hundred Brits kitted out as Santas helped to raise the equivalent of $20,000 for a British hospice.

His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, issued a royal decree creating the Sharjah Cycling Club to enhance “Sharjah’s cycling reputation locally and globally, supporting sports and cultural sectors, and promoting cycling as a healthy lifestyle choice.” And no, I never heard of the place, either.

Nearly 900 Japanese bike riders lost their driver’s licenses for being drunk on a bicycle.

 

 

Competitive Cycling

UCI confirmed the official men’s and women’s WolrdTour teams for the coming year. Not so fast, Cofidis.

Australian cyclist Michael Matthews feels reinvigorated and ready to tackle the spring classics, after the 35-year old pro briefly considered retiring following a pulmonary embolism just days before the Tour de France.

Italian cyclist and former world champ Elisa Balsamo says despite the growth of women’s cycling, she still has to deal with questions of “why would a woman race a bike” to begin with.

The US ‘Cross Championships are underway in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

 

Finally…

Face it, you can’t out-crazy Portland, particularly when it comes to bikes. How many professional cyclists does it take to launch a piloted glider?

And the best way to beat Yosemite traffic is to use the bike path.

But not if you’re in a car.

https://www.tiktok.com/@tent.and.lantern/video/7544160810629614878?embed_source=121374463%2C121468991%2C121439635%2C121749182%2C121433650%2C121404359%2C121497414%2C121477481%2C121351166%2C121811500%2C121960941%2C121860360%2C121487028%2C121679410%2C121331973%2C120811592%2C120810756%2C121885509%3Bnull%3Bembed_blank&refer=embed&referer_url=www.activenorcal.com%2Fdriver-caught-cruising-down-yosemite-bike-lane-in-viral-tiktok%2F&referer_video_id=7544160810629614878

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Round 2 of HLA appeals this Friday, teen e-moto gang in Hermosa Beach attack, and Westwood bike lane battle back on

December 3, 2025 / / No comments
Day 337 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

It’s Day 6 of the 11th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive! Not that you probably have any money left to give after Giving Tuesday.

But if you do, we’ll take it.

And by we, I mean me and the corgi.

So thanks to Ben for his generous support yesterday. And thank you in advance for giving what you can, when you can, to help keep SoCal’s best source for bike news and advocacy coming your way every day. 

It only takes a few moments to donate via PayPal, Zelle or Venmo. 

Your support is what keeps this site going through the lean months, and helps ensure the corgi finds a few kibbles in her stocking this holiday season.

Because you don’t want to see a sad corgi on Christmas morning. 

Trust me. 

In today’s photo, the corgi offers her editorial opinion of both the city’s convoluted rejection of HLA compliance, and the prospect of a kibble-less Christmas.

………

It’s round 2 of the battle to implement Measure HLA, as the Los Angeles Board of Public Works will consider a second batch of appeals over projects that should have complied with the measure, but didn’t.

All of which were filed by Joe Linton in his personal, rather than professional, capacity.

As with the first round, we can expect the board to routinely reject each of these, regardless of merit, as the city insists on taking the bizarre position that any project involving the application of paint on pavement is merely “restriping,” no matter how much additional work was involved.

That includes a project on Melrose near L.A. City College, where the city removed a peak-hour lane and added more parking for cars — yet left out the protected bike lanes called for in the Mobility Plan 2035.

The whole point of Measure HLA was to require the city to build out the mobility plan whenever they did significant roadwork.

And I’d call that significant.

The only thing likely to force the Board of Public Works to actually reconsider these projects is if supporters of bike, pedestrian and traffic safety turn out in force, and in person, to make them listen.

The meeting is scheduled for 10 am this Friday, in the Edward R. Roybal BPW Session Room, Room 350, of LA City Hall at 200 N. Spring Street.

You can read Linton’s brief summary of the appeals here.

………

We keep learning more about the vicious attack on a 57-year old man carrying a pizza in Hermosa Beach, allegedly committed by an ebike-riding gang of kids in their early teens.

Although in this case, ebike appears to mean electric motorbikes and non-street legal dirt bikes.

But as for gang, that’s literal.

According to the Los Angeles Times,

The bold and seemingly unprompted attack has outraged the coastal community and stoked simmering frustrations around alleged teen e-bike gangs organizing under names such as the Goons and the Redondo Beach Killers.

Now it appears that some of the alleged attackers came from the neighboring city of Manhattan Beach. In a Sunday email to parents, Manhattan Beach Middle School Principal Matthew Horvath said that students at the school were involved in the incident, the Manhattan Beach News reported. Representatives for the district did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In this case, however, the Goons and RB Killers may not be what you normally think of when you see the term “gang.”

I’m told by someone who lives in the area that the gangs accused of “assaulting and terrorizing” beachside residents are the products of privileged homes and indulgent parents, who too often stand in the way of accountability for their kids until it’s too late.

And now it is.

Although it’s apparently not too late for angry residents to vent their frustration at city officials.

………

Los Angeles wants to know what you think about the long — and I do mean long — gestating Westwood Boulevard Safety and Mobility Project.

The project, which has been batted around in one form or another since for at least the past two decades, is intended to improve safety for bike riders and pedestrians along the dangerous corridor between Westwood Village and the Metro E (nee Expo) Line.

According to the Westside Current,

The department says the project is being developed in line with Healthy Streets LA and Mobility Plan 2035, which identify Westwood Boulevard as a priority for transit, bicycle and pedestrian upgrades. LADOT is gathering feedback on “transportation safety concerns, access challenges and ideas for how the street could function better for everyone,” and says staff will review all comments before drafting recommended infrastructure changes.

It’s nice to see the city actually working with Measure HLA, rather than fighting it, as they’ve done with virtually every other project up to this point.

………

Richard Fox, author of the enCYCLEpedia guidebook to Southern California’s scenic bikeways, forwards his rave review of the newly mostly completed CV Link in the Coachella Valley. 

Mostly, because the wealthy enclaves of Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells wanted nothing to do with it, and it was too expensive to build around them.

………

Canada’s CTV network offers a review of fat biking in honor of Fat Bike Day.

Which sounds sort of like Fat Bear Week, but isn’t.

Thanks to Megan for the video.

………

If you want to know why bike riding is booming in London, here’s a pretty good explanation.

Since 2016, we've expanded London's Cycle Network by over 475% – and there is much more to come!

— Will Norman (@willnorman.co.uk) 2025-12-02T10:47:14.594Z

………

A bike-riding British influencer is teaching her dad how to be a bicyclist on his second-hand road bike.

………

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

A British Colombia letter writer almost gets it, asking if bicyclists should be treated more like pedestrians than motorists. But then goes on to say we’d be better off sharing sidewalks with pedestrians like “many places in Europe,” and wouldn’t mind wearing “highly visible license plates” if it finally allows us to get off the streets. Um, that’s a hard no.

But sometimes it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

Bicyclists in the UK even get criticized for not riding in a bike lane when it doesn’t even exist yet.

………

Local 

Streetsblog reports work on expanding Baldwin Park’s Barnes Park is “trooping along,” and a new connection from Walnut Creek Nature Park to the greenway walk/bike path is nearly finished.

Los Angeles is getting what appears to be its first pump track in Arroyo Seco Park, near the border with South Pasadena (scroll down).

LA-based social justice apparel brand For Your Viewing Pleasure is releasing a four-piece collaboration with Palestinian paracycling team the Gaza Sunbirds, with 100% of the profits going to benefit the Gaza team.

 

State

‘Tis the season. The San Diego Padres surprised students at a local elementary school with 100 team-branded bicycles.

An ebike rider in San Luis Obispo got the blame for crashing “into the side of a car,” even though the driver cut him off by making a “left cross” turn across his path; the victim suffered “undisclosed” injuries.

After a more than 30-year career in advertising, I can assure Morgan Hill-based Specialized that if nearly everyone doesn’t get their ad, they screwed up, not everyone else who didn’t get the joke. Although they beg to differ.

San Francisco is planing to rip out a neck down installed to slow traffic, because drivers don’t like it. And really, isn’t their happiness all that really matters?

 

National

Cycling Weekly recommends 15 Christmas present ideas for bicyclists, picked by “people who ride thousands of miles a year.” Or maybe 12 Chanukah gifts, plus an extra three for birthdays, anniversaries and such.

We touched on this yesterday, but it’s worth mentioning in more detail that Seattle is testing out the nation’s first protected bike lane barriers made of recycled car and truck tires, which not only offer a lower price, but are easier to repair and cause less damaged to cars that hit them. Thanks to Mike for the heads-up. 

A Las Vegas writer says riding a fat tired bike through Death Valley on a roadway closed to cars, but not bikes, is nirvana on two wheels.

Go ahead and enjoy riding in Arizona, just don’t cross any intersections — the state ranks third in the US for the deadliest intersections, behind only Florida and Delaware. Meanwhile, California ranks all the way down at, uh, seventh.

A church in Joliet, Illinois held a fundraiser to pay funeral expenses for a 25-year old man who was killed in a hit-and-run while riding his bike to work.

In a story that will sound familiar to many bicyclists, an Ohio city is reviewing a 2008 ordinance that actually required bike lanes on certain streets, many of which were never built.

A Brooklyn man says he was iced out of a contract to install 500 bicycle parking pods across New York, after nearly a decade of fighting for them.

A volunteer organization in Memphis is using bicycles to deliver food to the homeless.

America’s oldest bikemaker is still making bicycles the old-fashioned way despite moving to South Carolina after more than a century in New York.

 

International

‘Tis the season, part two. An Ontario, Canada organization donated 90 bicycles to children in need.

 

Competitive Cycling

The American Criterium Cup returns for a fifth year, with a series of six races starting with June’s Tulsa Tough, although the $140,000 purse is up for grabs as last year’s men’s champ Maurice Ballerstedt returns to racing in Europe.

Thirty-one-year old American pro Veronica Ewers says she needs to step away from the sport for awhile to let her body recover, addressing the severe toll cycling takes by admitting medical tests show her bones are weak, and she hasn’t even had a period since 2014.

Now you, too, can own four “ultra rare” Colnagos, including the bike Sothebys says Tadej Pogačar rode in Toulouse, when he was actually busy riding up Mont Ventoux.

 

Finally…

Throwing your bicycle at a cop during a burglary is not one of its many approved uses. Your next bicycle could be a Ducati.

And turning your old bike wheel into a new musical instrument.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

LA Public Works delays HLA appeals, not guilty plea in fatal PCH hit-and-run, and remembering the victims of traffic violence

November 17, 2025 / / 2 comments
Day 321 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

You can cancel those plans to attend Los Angeles Board of Public Works meeting, in-person or online, today.

Apparently acknowledging their “oopsie” in scheduling hearings for appeals of Measure HLA denials without the required ten day notice, they have rescheduled the appeals for one week from today, on November 24th.

You’re urged to attend the meeting in person to support Joe Linton as he challenges the denials of seven projects he says met the requirements for implementation under Measure HLA.

Because it’s a lot harder to ignore a room full of bicycle and traffic safety advocates in person than a bunch of people waiting to comment online.

………

The Long Beach woman accused of killing one bicyclist and injuring two others on PCH in Huntington Beach last month has pled not guilty.

Forty-three-year old Amber Kristine Calderon entered the plea to three felony hit and run charges in the death of 45-year old minister and father Eric John Williams, as well as critically injuring the other two men.

Calderon is free on a relatively paltry $100,000 bond; no word yet on the results of her toxicology tests.

………

Sunday was the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, which included a moving commemoration surrounding Los Angeles City Hall.

According to a notice from Streets Are For Everyone,

WHAT: As part of World Day of Remembrance for Traffic Victims (WDoR), Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE), The Emily Shane Foundation, The California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), Auto Club of Southern California (Auto Club) and other traffic safety organizations will hold a visual tribute Sunday, November 16, to honor the 711 people killed in traffic crashes across Los Angeles County in 2024.

Volunteers will cover a nearly four-block radius surrounding Los Angeles City Hall Park Center with 711 empty black chairs, each adorned with a yellow rose. The display symbolizes the empty seats left behind at dining room tables, outdoor patios and upcoming holiday gatherings, highlighting the impact traffic violence has on the Los Angeles County area. Families of victims are invited to honor their loved ones by bringing a photo or personal memento, or by writing their loved one’s name on a remembrance card to place on one of the empty chairs.

WHY: In 2024, 711 people were killed in Los Angeles County due to traffic crashes. In 2023, there were 814 people killed in crashes on Los Angeles County roads. WDoR is a global event held every third Sunday of November to remember people left behind by traffic violence or personally impacted by car crashes – and a call to action to support safer streets and improve road safety.

Let that sink in.

Seven-hundred-eleven dead on LA County streets.

Then let something else sink in. Because as of this writing, no Los Angeles news outlet has even bothered to cover it. Or at least not post it online.

Evidently, people dying of traffic violence is just an everyday thing around here. Literally.

I’m not in the mood to punch down tonight. But as much as I appreciate this tweet/post from LADOT, they are the ones responsible for creating the road conditions that contributed to far too many of those deaths.

As well as the ones who haven’t fixed them.

Meanwhile, San Diego residents turned out Sunday to call for safer streets on the World Day of Remembrance, hosted by Families for Safe Streets San Diego.

More than 250 people mounted the steps of the Massachusetts State House to mark the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, and demand stronger traffic safety laws to combat a rise in bicycling deaths.

And a ten-mile bike ride was set to roll Sunday from Bethesda, Maryland to Washington, DC for the World Day of Remembrance; past rides have drawn more than 1,000 people.

………

In yet another study that shouldn’t surprise anyone, researchers in the UK have found that free bicycle programs in some of the most disadvantaged areas resulted in improved health and wellbeing, as well as reduced social inequality for those who use them.

Sport England commissioned the report on behalf of the Active Wellbeing Society and examined the effects of free bike schemes in Birmingham, Essex, and Ealing. Their results show that the scheme, which includes wraparound support of bike lessons, maintenance and group rides free of charge, also strengthened community cohesion and encouraged more sustainable, environmentally-friendly behaviours. The schemes receive public funding but also rely on volunteers.

More than 12,000 bikes have been distributed since 2015 through the respective schemes (Birmingham Big Bikes, Essex Pedal Power and Let’s Ride Southall) and are estimated to have delivered an average return on social and economic investment of £11.80 for every £1.

That works out to $15.55 for every $1.32 invested.

The more than 1,200 bicycles distributed in three cities also resulted in significant reductions in preventable deaths and disease.

Comparing the data to the Office for National Statistics found that the scheme prevented 16% of expected new cases of disease among participants and 6% of expected deaths. The participants’ life satisfaction, when measured on a scale of 1-10, also increased by averages between 0.5 and 1.8.

So what the hell are we waiting for?

I mean, besides safer streets to ride them on.

Meanwhile, another study shows that households that use cargo bikes can cut their car miles in half.

………

They get it.

https://twitter.com/ActiveSGV/status/1990099317294551051

But you may not be out of luck if you live in the San Gabriel Valley.

………

‘Tis the season.

The kindhearted staff at a Duluth, Minnesota ski and bike shop collected over 300 pounds of food from their equally kindhearted customers, and delivered it by bicycle to a local nonprofit.

Hundreds of volunteers turned out in Pensacola, Florida to build over 500 bicycles to donate to local kids in need.

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

No bias here. A Kansas City letter writer says she supports safe infrastructure for bicyclists, but the city is going too far in prioritizing bike riders over drivers by removing traffic lanes on several major streets. As if drivers still don’t have near-total dominion on the overwhelming majority of city streets.

No bias here, either. The author of a Portuguese website dismisses a lawsuit filed by a bike advocacy group to keep the new mayor Gaia from ripping out a bike lane, because he never heard of them.

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

You’ve got to be kidding. It turns out that the yellow bicycle that 2019 Tour de France champ Egan Bernal rode into Paris wasn’t stolen after all — the Colombian cyclist staged the whole thing as a publicity stunt to promote his gran fondo. Let’s hope that nobody goes. 

………

Local 

KTLA-5 reminds us that the Melrose Ave CicLAvia this coming Sunday will host a takeover by Netflix’ Stranger Things.

The Los Angeles Times reports we have a limited opportunity to save an El Sereno open space for a new park offering panoramic views of the LA area, but only if the 110 acre Elephant Hill Open Space can be saved from developers, and local landowners convinced to sell.

The LAPD arrested a man they called “the Mountain Bike Bandit,” accused of committing over 20 burglaries and escaping by bicycle.

Apparently having ended crime in Hermosa Beach, local officials touched briefly on the decrease in crime at a recent public forum, before devoting all their attention to the problem of, yes, ebikes.

 

State

Ouch. Jalopnik blames “now-deceased cycling-obsessed weirdo” John Forester for making bike riding worse for everyone else by instructing people to be “the kind of stereotypical, aggressive rider that so many people love to hate,” arguing that you now usually just find “obsessive weirdos” like the San Diego-based Forester in enthusiast forums. I may disagree with many Forester followers, but I’d describe the ones I know as passionate bicyclists, not “obsessive” or “weirdos.”

Sad news from Berkeley, where a man in his 60s was killed by a pickup driver while riding a bicycle on iconic Telegraph Ave near UC Berkeley.

More sad news, this time from Rancho Cordova, where a man was killed when he crashed his bicycle into a pole; police concluded it was a solo bike crash, and there was no foul play involved.

 

National

Life is cheap in Oregon, where a driver walked without charges for killing a 21-year old college student as she rode her bike in a crosswalk, after the driver in the right lane stopped for her, but the driver in the next lane blew right through the crosswalk as if it wasn’t there and the other driver had just stopped at random; cops said they couldn’t prove there was a “gross deviation from the standard of care a reasonable person would observe” in a similar situation. Other than, you know, stopping for someone in a crosswalk and not killing someone. 

National Geographic says Seattle is a city best explored by bicycle.

A transit user and advocate pulled off a surprising upset to win the race for mayor of Seattle.

Geek Wire considers the rise and fall of the once-mighty Seattle-based Rad Power Bikes, which is now on the brink of shutting down.

Sad news from Moab, Utah, where 56-year old Moab trail builder, mountain bike racer, pizza maker and campground host Fred Wilkinson died of natural causes while camping earlier this month.

Further adventures in bad headlines. Judging by the headline, a Salt Lake City TV station says a driver was charged with manslaughter for killing an ebike, because it doesn’t mention the person on the bike at all.

Advocacy groups are trying to raise the final $5 million needed to close a 3.6-mile gap in the Teton Pass trail system in Teton National Park, part of the 180-mile Greater Yellowstone Trail; engineers call it the “most technically ambitious pathway ever proposed in the Tetons.”

A group of bicyclists calling themselves Cyclingxsolidarity once again took to the streets of Chicago on Sunday to buy out food vendors so they could go home and stay safe from ICE agents.

When demand for Minnesota’s ebike voucher program was so great it crashed the website, it spurred a university study and forced the state to fix the technology. When the same thing happened in California, they just cancelled the whole damn program after a single round. 

A writer for Cycling Weekly calls Bentonville, Arkansas one of the weirdest places he’s ever been, but also one of the best American cities for bicycling.

A kindhearted New Jersey cop gave his own bicycle to a former D.A.R.E. and police youth academy student after the kid’s was stolen.

Around 800 people took part in the 26th edition of a 500-mile bike ride from the mountains of North Carolina to the coast.

 

International

Momentum recommends 12 “amazing” cities to explore by bicycle in the coming year. None of which are Los Angeles.

A cycling psychologist explains how to avoid bicycle burnout.

The London borough of Camden responded to resident surveys by releasing plans to redesign several streets that advocates termed “mind-glowingly good.” Which shows what can be done when cities actually care enough to listen to their residents.

That’s more like it. The British government is now dropping the previously recommended 12-foot lane width, and advising that traffic lanes should now be limited to 10 foot 8 inches to keep drivers from passing bicyclists without changing lanes.

While American cities continue to restrict ebikes, Dutch and Belgian seniors are using them to avoid slowing down as they age.

An Indian news site argues that “the bicycle, hailed worldwide as the greenest, cheapest way to get around,” remains the forgotten road user in Guwahati, “ridiculed by drivers, overlooked by planners, and left to dodge death daily.”

Cambodia’s ancient Angkor Archaeological Park now draws an average of over 100 bicyclists each day with a roughly 14-mile route through forests and rice fields, as bike tourism continues to grow post-COVID.

In a story we’ve heard far too often, a New Zealand man is giving up on bicycling after he and his wife were nearly struck by a driver after swerving their tandem to avoid a dooring.

 

Competitive Cycling

French cyclist Hugo Toumire announced his retirement from the pro tour at just 24, after the Cofidis team lost its WorldTour license, and he was diagnosed with endofibrosis.

Spain’s Aleix Espargaró decided that life as a pro cyclist isn’t compatible with life as a pro motorcyclist after all, and gave up his brief one season experiment with both.

Tragic news from Australia, where multi-time world paracycling champ Paige Greco died at her home Sunday after “experiencing a sudden medical episode;” she was just 28.

UCI is trying to turn the clock back half a decade, reducing key measurements on WorldTour bikes to cut their aerodynamics and slow them down a little in an effort to improve safety.

Cyclist rates how every women’s WorldTour team did this year.

Nothing like testing your new race bikes in a tunnel full of helium bubbles and laser beams.

Dutch cycling officials are trying to set up Mathieu van der Poel and Puck Pieterse to complete in both road cycling and mountain biking in the ’28 LA Olympics.

 

Finally…

That feeling when you learn to ride a bike, but still don’t know the difference between Lance and Neal Armstrong. Or when bicycling is less passion and more lifestyle.

And before you jump into a lake to avoid a traffic stop for a bicycling violation, make sure you can swim first.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

LA Public Works pulls fast one on HLA, private group examines CA ebike safety, and bike events on a rainy weekend

November 14, 2025 / / No comments
Day 318 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

This has been a very long and rough day, leaving me dead on my ass, because I don’t have the strength to get on my feet.

And Friday doesn’t promise to start any better. 

So we’re going to depart from our usual format to cover some breaking news and time-sensitive announcements today, and catch up on the rest of the news on Monday. 

Scout’s honor. 

Meanwhile, the forecast calls for some pretty heavy rain this weekend, especially on Saturday.

So if you can, stay home. But if you do have to ride your bike, make yourself as visible as possible, because drivers will have limited vision, and won’t expect anyone to be out on a bike in the rain. 

Also, be careful riding through flooded intersections. It can be hard to judge how deep they really are, and they can hide hidden objects like potholes and bodies.

Okay, maybe not bodies. Hopefully. 

Avoid bike paths along river channels. And be alert near burn scars from the January fires, which can be prone to flooding and mudflows. 

I want to see you back here Monday in one piece. 

………

Is the Los Angeles Board of Public Works trying to pull a fast one?

And I mean that literally.

Because the city’s ordinance implementing Measure HLA says they have to give ten days advance notice before hearing an appeal from someone accusing the city of violating the measure.

Yet they only sent out notification yesterday that seven appeals filed by Joe Linton in his personal capacity will be heard on Monday.

Which by my calculations works out to just four days. Then again, I was an English major, so math isn’t exactly my strong point.

Still, it’s a clear violation of the law, any way you count it.

But assuming they don’t care about that — and why would they, since they don’t seem to care about anything else having to do with HLA — the appeals are scheduled for Monday’s 10 am virtual meeting.

You can download the agenda here; just click on the Download button on the right of each agenda item for full details of each appeal.

They have already denied six of the seven complaints. On the seventh, they agreed there was a violation, but only promised to fix broken sidewalks, rather than adding the bike and pedestrian improvement required under HLA.

So it’s worth signing up for the meeting and commenting to demand they follow the requirements of HLA, which is now the law after passing with overwhelming support.

Because right now, it looks like the city is just daring us to sue them.

Again.

And not just for pulling a fast one.

………

This could be worth keeping an eye on.

A new statewide coalition funded by a grant from Honda will study “what makes ebikes dangerous and how to make them safer,” without simultaneously discouraging their use.

The California Independent Electric Mobility Council says they will meet six times before releasing recommendations for state and local governments.

Although it seems a little odd to have a set schedule for deciding what the problem with ebikes is, and what solutions there might be — unless maybe they’ve already decided and are just going through the motions.

And that’s assuming that ebikes really are dangerous. We still haven’t seen a study looking at rising ebike rates in the context of increasing ebike usage. Because it’s entirely possible that ebikes are no more dangerous than regular bicycles.

Because to my knowledge, no one has even looked at it, rather than just starting from the assumption that rising injury rates mean ebikes are bad.

There’s also the question of whether they will bother to distinguish between ped-assist ebikes, electric motorbikes and non-street legal dirt bikes, rather than lumping them all together.

You know, like everyone else does.

As a privately funded organization, they won’t be subject to California’s Brown Act, which guarantees the public’s right to attend and participate in government meetings.

So we don’t know yet if any or all of those meetings will be public, and if we’ll even have a chance to offer any input.

I’m not saying this private coalition is a bad thing. It could yield some very positive results.

But there are still a lot of questions we need answered.

………

BikeLA, nee Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, says their annual Bike Fest will take place tomorrow rain or shine. And right now, that looks like rain.

 

Rain or shine — BikeFest 2025 is on!

Good news: Rain or shine, BikeFest is happening this Saturday, November 15, from 12–3 p.m. Thanks to Highland Park Brewery, we’ll be shifting the party indoors as the weather turns, so the celebration is fully covered!

We’ll still be hosting free bike valet for anyone who rides, so bring your bike and pedal on over. And don’t forget to dress for a little rain–jackets and rain-ready gear encouraged!

Join us for a Pedal-Powered Party featuring:

  • Free bike valet
  • One beer or non-alcoholic drink
  • A commemorative BikeLA bandana

️ Our largest-ever bike-themed silent auction, with gear from Spurcycle, Patagonia, Yakima, Tern, Road Runner Bags, ABUS, Kryptonite, and more.

The auction is live now, so you can start bidding today!

Come celebrate with us and support BikeLA’s mission to make L.A. a safer, more connected place to ride.

Meanwhile, Bike Long Beach is hosting a feeder ride to Bike Fest in the morning.

Bike LA Bike Fest annual fundraiser

It’s that time again! Bike LA’s Bike Fest happy hour annual fundraiser is this Saturday and once again we’re riding from Long Beach. Come join us as we head to DTLA for an unforgettable day where bike-minded people come together, celebrate, and keep the movement moving. This time we’re riding all the way there via the LA river trail, about 22 miles. For the ride back we can do the same route in reverse, or you can hop on Metro and ride the A line back to Long Beach.

Everyone is welcome on any bike, but keep in mind that due to the distance it’s not a beginners ride. Make sure you’re okay with a ride of this length.

Start: Wardlow station, Wardlow Ave and Pacific Pl.
Meet time: 9:00 a.m., roll at 9:30 a.m.
End: Highland Park Brewery, 1220 N Spring St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Distance: 22 miles, via the LA river trail.

If you want to attend Bike Fest but rather not ride all the way there, you can take Metro! The venue is very close to the Chinatown station.

………

Streets For All is hosting a discussion Monday night on the future of cities, and how to free ourselves from car culture.

Please.

Freeing ourselves from car culture — live in LA

We’re just a few days away from welcoming The War on Cars hosts for a lively and humorous discussion about their national bestseller, Life After Cars: Freeing Ourselves from the Tyranny of the Automobile.

Join us Monday, November 17th at Dynasty Typewriter for an evening on the future of cities, featuring:

Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez
️ Alissa Walker (Torched.la)
Bill Wolkoff (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds)

️ Get your tickets now — they’re going fast!
Dynasty Typewriter, 2511 Wilshire Blvd
7:30pm (VIP reception at 6pm for Members Club)

Cleverhood giveaway -> Attend for a chance to win branded merch! A winner will be drawn at random. Choose either a Streets For All Rover 2.0 Cape or Streets for All Anorak.
(Benefit from a 15% discount on gear anytime online)

Don’t miss it!

See you there,
Streets For All

BUY TICKETS!
Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Fountain Ave design meeting tonight, LA opens HLA appeals process, and recaps from Sunday’s successful CicLAvia

August 19, 2025 / / One comment
Day 231 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

A quick reminder before we start about this week’s anticipated heat wave, with temperatures in Woodland Hills, LA County valleys and the Inland Empire expected to top well over 100°. 

So try to ride early or late if at all possible, stick to shady, tree-lined routes when you can, and drink plenty of non-alcoholic fluids. 

And keep your phone handy to get help if you get overheated. 

Seriously, stay safe out there. I need every reader I’ve got these days. 

………

West Hollywood with host a meeting tonight to discuss plans for the long-delayed Fountain Avenue Streetscape Project tonight in Rooms 5 & 6 of the Plummer Park Community Center on Santa Monica Blvd.

The presentation starts at 6 pm with an open house and refreshments, followed by a presentation and Q&A session.

You can review a pdf of the draft plan here.

Unfortunately, I’m not comfortable leaving my wife alone so soon after her heart attack, so I’m disappointed I won’t be there this time.

And yes, I feel guilty as hell asking you to go in my stead, but supporters need to turn out in force if you can make it.

Because opponents of the plan are certain to be there to fight for their precious free curbside parking spaces and a not-so-secret alternative to busier Sunset and Santa Monica Blvds, valuing convenience over protecting human lives.

Photo by Joe Linton/Streetsblog depicts protesters opposed to Fountain Ave bike lanes.

………

Los Angeles officially opened the appeals process for street projects that bypass Measure HLA’s strict requirement to build out the city mobility plan whenever streets get significantly resurfaced or re-striped.

Acting on his own behalf, Joe Linton wasted no time filing an appeal for work not done on Ohio Avenue.

Today I submitted a city-level appeal for protected bike lanes that the city did not install during resurfacing on Ohio Avenue – along the Bundy Triangle Park in Sawtelle. Read my appeal letter.

He is also aware of a number of other appeals that should be filed soon.

I have discussed possible appeals with several people, and I understand that other folks are planning to file city-level appeals today. Below are additional appeals that I am aware of today. (I am adding to this list as I learn of additional appeals.)

  • Appeal of Corinth Avenue in Sawtelle Japantown – pdf
  • Appeal of Kingsley Dr. in Koreatown – one page image
  • Appeal of Kingswell Ave. and Rodney Dr. in Los Feliz – pdf or page 1, 2
  • Appeal of Mesa and Eagle Dale Avenues in northeast L.A. – pdf
  • Appeal of Middlebury St. in East Hollywood – pdf

This is the first step required by the city before a lawsuit can be filed to enforce the requirements of Measure HLA — even though that was not part of the proposition passed overwhelming by LA voters.

………

Streetsblog offers an open thread on Sunday’s Culver City meets Venice CicLAvia, along with Joe Linton’s typically great photos.

David also forward several photos, along with these brief comments.

This was an extraordinary one. Maybe the largest group of cyclists ever for a Ciclavia.  It was an impressive turnout of cycles.

Councilwoman Tracy Park set up a Tent in Mar Vista and the Venice end and unlike any other elected politician ever she stayed there from morning till it was done handing out bike flashing to everyone and chatting with anyone about anything that stopped on their bike. I saw her in the morning at Mar Vista and later at almost 4 pm in Venice.

Usually the electeds stay for the 1 hour morning photo-op to start the event and leave their staffers at the table the rest of the day.

Attached is a photo of me with Tracy Park and some Misc photos from the Venice end.  I did not take a lot of photos at this one just wanted to enjoy the experience.

Photos by David Drexler

Finish the Ride was there, too.

 

………

Today’s common thread is just how cheap life your life is held if you ride a bicycle.

Like in Nebraska, where an Arkansas man was sentenced to a lousy 31 months behind bars for the attempted hit-and-run death of an 82-year-old man riding a bicycle.

Or in Louisiana, where a former state trooper walked without a day behind bars for the drunken hit-and-run death of a man biking with his two sons, after a judge sentenced him to a three-year suspended sentence and three years probation.

Or Singapore, where a garbage truck driver was sentenced to just six months behind bars for killing a 60-year old man riding a bicycle, insisting he only realized he’d hit someone when he felt a bump under his wheels, although an eight-year driving ban will keep him from working again until he’s 72.

On the other hand, a 28-year old Texas man got 15 years for the hit-and-run that killed a Fort Worth father of five as he was riding his bicycle last year; the driver’s mother told police he wasn’t sure if he hit a deer or a homeless man, neither of which would justify just driving away — or covering his car with a tarp to hide it from the cops.

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

No bias here. Indianapolis, Indiana scrapped several segments of a planned bike lane after gradually paring it down so drivers could keep their precious curbside parking, choosing their convenience over everyone’s safety.

A bike rider in Cheshire, England says people riding on the county’s roads are “fair game for crazy drivers,” after police reject video evidence of dangerous driving due to a lack of witnesses. Although it seems like the cops themselves would be witnesses if they just watched the videos.

Bicyclists in West Yorkshire, England criticized the cops following yet another mass casualty event when a driver cut back into a group of bicyclists while attempting to pass on a blind curve, resulting in serious injuries to two riders, with several others hurt; the “abysmal” police report failed to criticize the driver, or even mention that the car had one.

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

A 20-year old British man was sentenced to eight years and three months in a young offenders’ institution for the hit-and-run death of an 86-year old man just walking to a fish and chips shop, moments after popping a wheelie and swerving all over the road on his ebike. Although it sounds more like he was riding an e-motorbike than a ped-assist ebike, but still. 

………

Local 

KCBS-2 looks at Metro’s adopt-a-bike program to assist families affected by January’s devastating Eaton and Palisades firestorms

Secret Los Angeles looks forward to Santa Clarita’s forthcoming $7.4 million Haskell Canyon Bike Park. Even though that scheduled opening is only a secret if you haven’t been paying attention.

ICE agents are accused of snatching a man off his bicycle in a Santa Clarita raid, and heartlessly leaving the man’s bicycle lying in the roadway.

 

State

A Davis columnist recommends an ebike for a friend’s son, saying it’s the perfect solution to allow the 6’10” 16-year old to attend a school in another neighborhood with a better basketball couch.

 

National

Bicycling recommends eight jersey’s built for this month’s extreme heat, with no paywall this time because they hope to make a little on the backend.

Cycling Electric recommends the year’s best e-gravel bikes. Or gravel ebikes. Or something.

A member of the Washington State Traffic Safety Commission busts the myth of wrong-way riding being safer for bicyclists. I still hear from people on a regular basis who insist salmon bicycling is safer than riding with traffic, all evidence to the contrary.

Residents of Houston, Texas demanded better police protection after a 77-year old man was fatally stabbed by a transient as he was riding his bicycle to work on an East Houston bike trail.

An Iowa college professor is employing lessons in the classroom she learned on a 56-day bike ride from Kentucky to San Francisco with her husband along the Trans American Bicycle Trail and Western Express Bike Route.

I want to be like him when I grow up. A 90-year old Milwaukee man is still riding his e-recumbent around 150 miles a week when weather allows.

A Boston company now allows you to rent a cargo bike in eight neighborhoods throughout the city.

The rich get richer, as New York releases a masterplan of 100 projects to expand the city’s 506-mile bicycle greenway network, designed to “connect underserved communities, spur economic development and provide environmental benefits.”

Great idea. Alexandria, Virginia is recruiting bike-riding volunteers to deliver food from local farmer’s markets to residents in need as part of their Bike for Good program.

 

International

A new McGill University study shows Montreal doesn’t have enough bicycle infrastructure to meet demand, taking up just two percent of street space despite a measurable need for more in some areas.

An Icelandic man is working to raise funds and awareness for multiple myeloma, after a new treatment helped ease his pain and get him back on his bike.

Cycling UK opens a new multi-day bikepacking route through “Majestic rolling hillsides, historic regal villages and bluebell-lined woodland trails,” just a stones-throw from London.

A bicycling professor offers advice on how newcomers can safely bike through Amsterdam. Which would seem to be a lot safer than biking in LA, newcomer or otherwise.

 

Competitive Cycling

Canadian Tour de France stage winner and world championship medalist Michael Woods calls it a career, arguing that it’s a “ludicrously dangerous sport,” but Velo says he has big plans going forward.

Former South African champion Ryan Gibbons calls it quits after nine years in cycling’s highest tier, the last two as Mads Petersen’s key lead-out man.

Belgian “domestique extraordinaire” Tim Declercq also calls it a career after 14 years, torching the peloton on his way out for having too many riders who don’t care if they crash and take ten other riders out with them.

A writer for Cycling Weekly argues for making bike racers take a skills test, just like motorsports drivers, with tongue placed firmly in cheek.

 

Finally…

That feeling when “Lime Bike leg” only seems to afflict London bike riders.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: General / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
 
Wordpress Theme by ThemeZee